How does the weather impact what makeup you wear? Does it?
For me, since I live in California, it’s usually just when it’s really, really hot that longer-wearing products are more key. In the winter, sometimes my skin can get drier, so though it’s not dependent on the weather that day, but I might use more cream products.
Do you have a question idea? Submit yours here.
We're here to help you make better beauty purchases that you'll enjoy and love! We recommend signing up to take advantage of personalized features like tracking products you own, viewing dupes that you already have, and more!
Here are some useful resources for you:
Curious how two shades compare to each other? Type in the shades below to get instant side-by-side swatches!
Comments that do not adhere to our comment policy may be removed. Discussion and debate are highly encouraged but we expect community members to participate respectfully. Please keep discussion on-topic, and if you have general feedback, a product review request, an off-topic question, or need technical support, please contact us!
Please help us streamline the comments' section and be more efficient: double-check the post above for more basic information like pricing, availability, and so on to make sure your question wasn't answered already. Comments alerting us to typos or small errors in the post are appreciated (!) but will typically be removed after errors are fixed (unless a response is needed).
We appreciate enthusiasm for new releases but ask readers to please hold questions regarding if/when a review will be posted as we can't commit to or guarantee product reviews. We don't want to set expectations and then disappoint readers as even products that are swatched don't always end up being reviewed due to time constraints and changes in priorities! Thank you for understanding!
We try to approve comments within 24 hours (and reply to them within 72 hours) but can sometimes get behind and appreciate your patience! 🙂 If you have general feedback, product review requests, off-topic questions, or need technical support, please contact us directly. Thank you for your patience!
Just like being sick, it doesn’t make a difference to me. I always wear it because I love to!
It’s pretty temperate here, so I don’t bother much – but if it’s really windy, I’ll avoid lipgloss 😉
I’ve always lived in pretty rainy places, so if I know I’m going somewhere important, or walking in the rain, I’ll make sure to wear waterproof mascara and no eyeliner, or to walk with an umbrella (which I never do normally). Similarly, if it’s really hot, I usually just won’t wear makeup because I HATE the feeling of being sweaty and feeling my makeup on top of my sweaty face.
When it’s hot out I just slap on layers of sunscreen, maybe something on my lips, and call it a day. When it’s cold, dry, and windy, I make sure to prep my under eyes well to avoid dry patches and to make sure I have my lubricating eyedrops. That’s about it, really.
The weather really doesn’t make up my mind. Well, if it’s blazing hot, I’d probably just wear concealer and powder instead of adding tinted moisturizer to the mix.
It’s all about the air and humidity.
Whether it’s air travel, a cruise, rain, or snow, my skin reacts.
I have to counterbalance the situation.
Sometimes that means a tint (no moisturizer or foundation), sometimes a tinted moisturizer, and sometimes a silky smooth foundation.
Sometimes I need setting powder as well.
It gets very cold where I live, and in winter I need to account for dryness and the fact that I’ll usually need to wear a scarf over my face when I go outside. So, that means I prefer to use moisturizing makeup, and I tend to wear lipstick and coloured gloss less frequently when it’s cold.
During the winter, my skin is very dry, so all I need is a little extra moisturizer and then I’ll do my normal makeup routine. The summertime is a whole notha story though. I live in Vegas and at temperatures nearing 120, I wear barely anything or nothing at all because it just melts off. I do get really tan though and if I want to look a little more ‘done up’ I’ll put on mascara and blush.. But those are my favs no matter what 🙂
Mostly rain – and of course it rains a lot in Seattle – I haven’t bothered with even moderately heavy eyeliner or smokey eyes since I moved back here. It’s a disaster waiting to happen!
Once fall comes around I pull out my vampy lippies more often but that’s about it. I always do my makeup first before picking out my outfit usually or checking the weather so most times it depends on my mood lol
I’m not sure that the weather has much of an impact, exactly, but the amount of light has some. I tend to wear my beloved dark lip colours a lot more when there’s less light- at night, clearly and also during the winter when the days are shorter.
When it gets very cold and dry, I have to be careful in my choice of lipstick formulas.
As far as actual weather goes, humidity is really the only thing that affects what I choose to wear. When it’s really hot and humid, I tend to go with waterproof, longwear formulas and lighter textures. When it’s really cold and dry, I choose more moisturizing cream based products.
I live on a tropical island, so it’s mostly sunny. However, when it rains, I use less makeup, wearing only a foundation, eyeliner and a lipgloss.
I live in nebraska, if its raining or chance of snow, I wear waterproof makeup. I never wear fake lashes because it is so windy out here. I always wear moisturizer, always wear spf. In the summer I tend to wear tinted moisturizer (usually over regular moisturizer or a primer) instead of foundation because of the humidity.
If it’s below -30, I don’t wear mascara because my eyes water, it freezes on my lashes and then melts when I warm up!
The weather sometimes impacts the colours I pick out. If it’s sunny and warm, I usually pull out happy colours; pinks and corals and golds. When it’s overcast I realise I’m more likely to pick a dark lip or a smoky eye.
In SoCal, we don’t have “seasons”, so weather is always the biggest contributing factor.
When it’s hot/humid, I’ll reach for a TM & MPF, and perhaps a bit of concealer, if necessary. I keep eyes simple (lighter colors, mascara, maybe liner), and lips are either a nude or MLBB (ifmI’m not wearing lip balm). I don’t like to fuss with melting makeup, and brighter lippies tend to migrate in the heat.
With cooler weather, I’ll definitely go further, and often opt for a fuller coverage foundation, blush, vampy lip, and dramatic eyes. When it’s cooler, it is typically evening, so I’m usually going out, which also affects my overall appearance.
Even in mild heat I melt even if I’m not feeling hot. From the tips of my toes to ends of my hair I’m dripping, sweaty mess even. It’s hilarious when I’m around other people because it looks like they’re in a different climate than me (The only good thing is that my sweat doesn’t leave behind any traces; no weird odors, or any oiliness; just evaporates like water) My liner often ends on my cheeks so getting waterproof stuff is a must.
I don’t think I’ve ever let weather dictate my makeup, but I live in beautiful CA so.. 🙂
I live in Northern Mexico and it gets really, really hot in the summer, so I try to keep makeup to a minimum on hot days, just a BB cream and a simple eye look and minimal face products, light lipstick.
In winter, I tend to use richer products and do more full face makeup looks. Primer, foundation, powder, heavier eye shadow, the works!
I’m in Chicago, and every season is extreme here. If it’s winter and I’m all bundled up, I won’t wear face makeup because I don’t want it rubbing off on my hat and scarf. I also make sure to exfoliate and moisturize frequently. Sunscreen is still important, since overcast skies and light reflecting off of snow is a recipe for a bad sunburn.
During summer, it gets very hot and humid here, so I usually forgo all makeup except for heavy duty sunscreen, since I’ll just end up sweating everything off anyway. Anything else makes my face feel disgusting.
I am in Chicago, too. In the winter I often add Kiehl’s non-freeze skin protector under makeup so my skin doesn’t freeze. It also stops windburn.(My ex-husband works outside year round and he swears by it). I wear waterproof eye makeup since the wind and cold often makes my eyes water. In the summer when it is hot and humid I still use waterproof products and swear by Urban Decay’s All Nighter setting spray. I taught summer school in a school set on concrete with no trees around it and no a/c during a summer where the heat was often above 100. My makeup never melted. I have also found some waterproof foundations that stay put even when my face is sweating.
I live in California, so no. We don’t have weather!
Last year when it rained, I had to switch to waterproof formulas because my makeup ran and made my eyes sting, but it doesn’t even rain here anymore.
For me it’s more dependent on what my day looks like. I don’t wear makeup to work since I’m either working in a warehouse or a mechanic shop and that would be silly.
If it’s REALLY hot, I may forgo makeup cuz I’ll just sweat it off anyways.
Since it’s been 40C (104F) (or higher) these past few days I haven’t been bothering with much makeup unless I know I’ll be somewhere air-conditioned.
Yes, I give up on wearing it in summer. Haha
I live in Ontario (Canada) on the Great Lakes so winters are harsh – damp one day, 35 below the next and super windy – we live beside a commercial farm so it’s wide open. (Originally I’m from further north with lots of trees sheltering – no wind!) My skin has become super dry and sensitive so the winters demand more moisturizing products and formulas that melt with the skin better. Summers are super hot so I have to switch to lighter gels and lotions and more long wearing products that won’t melt off my face!!!
115 Fahrenheit in my town today (in Australia). I ditched the laura mercier silk creme mixed with mac studio fix and went straight for the revlon colourstay. Minimal eye makeup, Minimal shimmer blush (mac Sunbasque) and went for shimmer in my lipgloss (mac cultured) which is easier to reapply. I’m a nurse, love to look nice for my patients, and by the end of the day only looked slightly melted rather than a trainwreck :))) love, love your site Christine! You are so beautiful and an absolute wealth of knowledge, love all the readers comments, it’s wonderful knowing there are ladies who love makeup as much as me :))) xxxx
In warmer weather I wear less foundation and more tinted moisturizers. I also tend to wear more metallic textured eyeshadows and lighter colored makeup. In winter, I’m able to wear more cream eyeshadows and cream blushes on my combination/oily skin without it fading as quickly.
I live in Phoenix so weather is a factor only to the extent of whether to use cream or powder. And in the summer, it’s usually so hot that wearing anything other than eye makeup is a complete waste of time and money. In the summer here, I don’t care how “bulletproof” the face product claims to be, it will be gone in a short time. Even stains.
But one thing weather never does factor in for me is color. I wear whatever colors I feel like no matter the season. I cannot and will not get on board with the “seasonal” color trends that the companies promote so heavily. If you like it and it likes you, then wear it whenever!!
My makeup routine is basically the same no matter the weather, but I do tend to wear lighter/sheer lipsticks when it´s hot and love to wear deep berries or dark pink ones in the winter. In hot weather I carry with me a purse size mineral water in spray to apply throughout the day, it feels so good!
We have seasons in New York which is good in terms of color selection but it also means long wearing or waterproof required. Summers or 90+ degrees and muggy from July thru September-Oct. Winters are wet, snowy and windy from late December into late March. No point in eye or face makeup that isn’t waterproof or doesn’t transfer to avoid it melting or getting on your scarf. Moisturizer always necessary especially in winter to protect from dry skin and pollution. Stains and budge proof/crease proof of everything are always a favorite.
I work from home so I don’t usually go out unless it’s somewhere I’d wear more (vibrant) makeup, so in the first place it doesn’t make much of a difference. If it’s a rainy or humid night though, I nix the foundation because I hate how it feels, and I make absolutely sure my eyeliner won’t move.
The winter kills my skin. I am constantly exfoliating and moisturizing. I have very fair skin and usually mix my foundation with snow white foundation (MAC Face and Body in White), but between the blistering winter wind and heaters, I let that go and just wear MAC Sculpt and my reserves of magically cooling powder. I am actually looking for a cure for my flaky skin right now.
In the summer, my skin is fantastic. I stay out of the sun (and use sunscreen anyway), so I am golden (not literally-very light and hydrated in reality).
It doesn’t really have much bearing on what I wear. Living in a dry climate with cold winters in Canada I do have to make sure I’m using moisturizing products.
In the summer I usually wear BB cream, and in the winter I lean towards my heavier/creamier foundations. Yawn. As for point makeup, I tend to do brighter, more colourful looks when it’s dreary out.
I have oily skin – which becomes a little dry in enters. So, in the winters, I am able to use thicker sunscreens, so tend to use powder foundation over it than liquid ones or ok to use foundations without spf (coz I anyways apply a thicker sunscreen). For blushes i tend to lean towards cream blushes – or it may just be that my latest purchases are the cream blushes from Chanel and YSL (which I am loving)!! Personally, I love corals, but feel a little of sorts when I wear them in winters – so tend to pick more plummy colours for the lips.
Inversely, in summers, I tend to use more lighter sunscreens or opt for foundations with spf. My pinks and corals come out in full swing – whether lips or cheeks!!
It’s pretty much always warm in Florida, so I don’t change it up too much. But if it’ extremely hot and I know I will be outside for a while, I will wear a really lightweight foundation. If it’s cold out I make sure to wear a moisturizing foundation.
The basic rule is the hotter it is, the less I wear haha
As I live in Holland, each day is a surprise! I make sure my mascara and liner are waterproof and my base has good staying power. And because I hate the glum weather, I use bright lipstick to brighten my day and mood!